Prescribed Essay Titles May 2014

The IB has just released the TOK essay titles for completion for the May 2014 session. I've reproduced them in English and Spanish below, together with the guidelines:

Your theory of knowledge essay for examination must be submitted to your teacher for authentication. It must be written on one of the six titles (questions) provided below. You may choose any title, but are recommended to consult with your teacher. Your essay will be marked according to the assessment criteria published in the Theory of Knowledge guide. The focus of your essays should be on knowledge issues. Where appropriate, refer to other parts of your IB programme and to your experiences as a knower. Always justify your statements and provide relevant examples to illustrate your arguments. Pay attention to the implications of your arguments, and remember to consider what can be said against them. If you use external sources, cite them according to a recognized convention. Note that statements in quotations in these titles are not necessarily authentic: they present a real point of view but may not be direct quotes. It is appropriate to analyse them but it is unnecessary, even unwise, to spend time on researching a context for them. 

Examiners mark essays against the title as set. Respond to the title exactly as given; do not alter it in any way.

Your essay must be between 1200 and 1600 words in length, double spaced and typed in

size 12 font.

1. Ethical judgements limit the methods available in the production of knowledge in both the arts and the natural sciences. Discuss.

2. “When the only tool you have is a hammer, all problems begin to resemble nails” (Abraham Maslow). How might this apply to ways of knowing, as tools, in the pursuit of knowledge?

3. “Knowledge is nothing more than the systematic organisation of facts.” Discuss this statement in relation to two areas of knowledge.

4. “That which is accepted as knowledge today is sometimes discarded tomorrow.” Consider knowledge issues raised by this statement in two areas of knowledge.

5. “The historian’s task is to understand the past; the human scientist, by contrast, is looking to change the future.” To what extent is this true in these areas of knowledge?

6. “A skeptic is one who is willing to question any knowledge claim, asking for clarity in definition, consistency in logic and adequacy of evidence” (adapted from Paul Kurtz, 1994). Evaluate this approach in two areas of knowledge.

And in Spanish:

1. Los juicios éticos limitan los métodos disponibles en la creación de conocimiento tanto en las artes como en las ciencias naturales. Discuta esta afirmación. 

2. “Si tu única herramienta es un martillo, tiendes a tratar cada problema como si fuera un clavo” (Abraham Maslow). ¿Cómo se puede aplicar esta afirmación a las formas de conocimiento, consideradas como herramientas, en la búsqueda de conocimiento? 

3. “El conocimiento no es más que la organización sistemática de los hechos”. Discuta esta afirmación en relación con dos áreas de conocimiento. 

4. “Aquello que hoy se acepta como conocimiento, mañana es a veces descartado”. Considere las cuestiones de conocimiento que esta afirmación puede generar en dos áreas de conocimiento. 

5. “La tarea del historiador es entender el pasado; el científico de las ciencias humanas, en contraste, busca cambiar el futuro”. ¿En qué medida es esto cierto en estas áreas de conocimiento? 

6. “Un escéptico es quien está inclinado a cuestionar cualquier afirmación de conocimiento, reclamando claridad en la definición, lógica consistente y pruebas pertinentes”. (adaptación de Paul Kurtz. The Skeptical Inquirer, 1994). Evalúe este enfoque con respecto a dos áreas de conocimiento.